TIRUNELVELI: First train from Tirunelveli, post lockdown relaxations, would be leaving for Bihar on Tuesday, taking home 1,140 migrant workers staying on the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) premises, said official sources. The 4,800-plus labourers, involved in the construction of units 3 and 4 of the power project, had earlier staged protests, demanding the State government to send them back home.
Following a proposal submitted to the State government, the necessary steps for the workers to return home were taken by the officials. Madurai Division sources said the workers would be subjected to a series of physical examinations on Tuesday, before allowing them to board the non-stop train.
Radhapuram Constituency MLA I S Inbathurai, who was present during a discussion with the workers, said that over 1,000 workers from Bihar and 1,500 more from Jharkhand were among the total workers staying in Kudankulam. The permit and the destination of the next such special train for the rest of the workers have not been confirmed yet.
Inbathurai said that a train from Mumbai, with nearly 1,400 passengers, had left for Tirunelveli. The train would reach the destination soon, but the date and time of its arrival are yet to be confirmed.
Meanwhile, among the 45 workers, who returned to Tirunelveli from Maharashtra bus on Sunday, one has tested positive. The rest 44 workers will be placed under self-quarantined.